A piece on the National Review site today takes me to task, along with several other right-of-center commentators, for not “taking the side of the players” in the Duke lacrosse case. I’m getting some pointed emails as a result. Silly me, I thought the judicial system was designed to evaluate evidence and determine the guilt or innocence of the accused.
Seriously, the NRO author seems to suggest that my stated concern about the cult of alcohol and cult of athletics on college campuses is at least pointless and possibly dangerous, in the latter case because it might lead to speech codes or other oppressive measures. Huh? What’s wrong with college leaders and professors setting good examples, expressing clear expectations about student behavior and academic commitment, and resisting the urge to hype the sports teams? I am hardly advocating speech codes – with the possible exception of death threats issued by scholarship athletes.
Oh, and sure, the publicly released evidence against the Duke lacrosse players certainly seems flimsy. I doubt seriously that conservative opinion writers pointing this out will change the judicial outcome.
